Tag Archives: mushing history

Nov-Dec Alaskan History

Posted on November 26, 2020 by Helen Hegener

The Nov-Dec issue of Alaskan History Magazine is now available! Articles in this issue cover a wide range of topics: Mottram Delany Ball • History of Fort Yukon • Episcopal Church in Iditarod • The Silent City • Nellie Cashman • 1922 Mushing Guide • The First American Musher in Alaska, by Thom “Swanny” Swan Continue reading →

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The Yukon Quest Trail

Posted on December 29, 2019 by Helen Hegener

The 2020 Yukon Quest International Sled Dog Race begins in Fairbanks at 11:00 am on February 1, and runs to Whitehorse, Yukon Territory; the Yukon Quest 300 starts at 3:00 pm the same day and runs to Circle, on the Yukon River. There are many exciting books about the race, and many written by the mushers who have run the race, but one book focuses on the trail between Fairbanks and Whitehorse, highlighting the incredible route followed by those mushers who accept the very real challenge of the Yukon Quest.  Continue reading →

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The Origins of Mushing

Posted on January 5, 2019 by Helen Hegener

“I find in the book, ‘The World of Sled Dogs,’ by Lorna Coppinger, that the earliest historical records of the use of sled dogs in the Siberian subarctic appear in Arabian literature of the tenth century; in writings of Marco Polo in the thirteenth century; and of Francesco de Kollo in the sixteenth.” Continue reading →

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Jujiro Wada, Trailblazer

Posted on June 14, 2018 by Helen Hegener

There are many strange and unusual stories in the annals of northern sled dog travel, but one of the most fascinating concerns an enigmatic Japanese explorer and adventurer named Jujiro Wada. Born in Japan in the 1870s, the second son of a lower-class samurai warrior, he traveled to the U.S. in 1890 and worked as a cabin boy for the Pacific Steam Whaling Company and at Barrow for the renowned Charlie Brower, manager of the Cape Smythe Whaling and Trading Company, which history buffs agree was probably where he learned to handle sled dogs and began learning the Alaska Native languages. Continue reading →

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Gakona Roadhouse

Posted on June 16, 2016 by Helen Hegener

This article is an excerpt from the book by Helen Hegener,  Alaskan Roadhouses, Shelter, Food, and Lodging Along Alaska’s Roads and Trails, published in 2015 by Northern Light Media. Ordering information below.   The Gakona roadhouse at milepost 205 on … Continue reading →

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1912 All Alaska Sweepstakes

Posted on June 12, 2016 by Helen Hegener

An old friend, Robert Lutz, sent me the link to an article which appeared in the March 27, 1912 issue of the newspaper, The San Francisco Call, which noted entries for the 1912 All Alaska Sweepstakes race. The article read, … Continue reading →

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Seppala Kennels Advertising Card

Posted on May 11, 2016 by Helen Hegener

I often stumble across interesting websites in my research, and one I’ve returned to a number of times over the years is the Alaskan Heritage Bookshop website, which sells Alaskan books, Alaskan art, vintage Alaskan memorabilia and photographs, and much … Continue reading →

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Crow Creek Pass, Iditarod Trail

Posted on May 6, 2016 by Helen Hegener

Crow Creek Pass is a popular summer destination with hikers and backpackers, crossing a scenic pass high in the great Chugach Range of mountains which overlooks Anchorage and separates the Matanuska Valley from Prince William Sound. Crow Creek pass, or … Continue reading →

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Joe Redington’s Iditarod Booklet

Posted on April 28, 2016 by Helen Hegener

A slim little booklet came to my attention at the Palmer library recently; if memory serves me it was tucked into their collection which cannot be checked out of the library but must remain in the building. Titled Iditarod Trail, … Continue reading →

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John “Iron Man” Johnson

Posted on April 22, 2016 by Helen Hegener

In 1910, a Scottish nobleman who lived in Nome, Fox Maule Ramsey, crossing the Bering Strait to Siberia and purchased 70 Siberian racing huskies. In that year’s All Alaska Sweepstakes race, a 408-mile run from Nome to Candle and return, … Continue reading →

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